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FairfaxCounty’s County’s Wastewater Management Program received
state certification today as an Extraordinary Environmental Enterprise or
E4 facility. Only two other such programs in the state have received this
certification to date.

As a result of the designation, the county will receive a 20 percent
discount on its state discharge permit. This discount will
contribute to the more than $100,000 in annual savings the Wastewater
Program generates because of its environmentally friendly practices.

To achieve E4 status, facilities must use an integrated environmental
management system. The county’s management system focuses on:

Pollution Prevention
The Noman M. Cole Jr.
Pollution Control Plantconsistently meetsfederal
pollution control standards 100 percent of the time and removes more
than 99 percent of pollutants from 45 million gallons of wastewater
daily. This helps protect the water quality of the county’s streams and
watersheds, as well as the Chesapeake Bay. The plant’s lab has almost
completely eliminated the use of mercury, which is harmful even in very
small amounts.

Environmental Sustainability
The plant reduced its water use by almost 50,000 gallons per year,
saving taxpayers approximately $90,800 last year. It also fuels
its incinerator with methane gas from the county’s I-95 landfill, preventing
the need to buy 300,000 cubic feet of natural gas per day. The plant
also conserves energy because it cuts power consumption during peak
demand, as well as uses solar power for some of its operations. Each
year, employees alsorecycle 30 tons of asphalt that’s dug
up when repairing sewer lines and keeps it waste from going to a
landfill. This also saves approximately $1,600 a year.

Community Outreach
The Sewer Science Program educates students about pollution and how to
prevent itfrom entering local waterways and the Chesapeake Bay. Since
2005, 8,309students from 21 high schools have
participated. To demonstrate how wastewater is treated, the
plant conducts an average of 25 tours to about 800 people per
year, including students, civic groups and scouts.

The county’s Wastewater Management Program maintains approximately 3,300
miles of sanitary sewer lines; 59 permanent sewage flow meters; 10
temporary sewage flow meters; 65 pumping stations; and 299 sewage grinder
pumps in an approved sewer service area that covers nearly 234 square
miles. More than 85 percent of the 325,000 households and virtually all
businesses in the county are connected to public sewers. New developments
or existing homes with septic tanks in the county’s approved sanitary
sewer service area can connect to public sewers.

For more information, contact the Fairfax County Wastewater Treatment
Division at 703-550-9740 ext. 255, TTY 711.